Category Archive

Today we’re having a conversation with Andrea Wendling, M.D., Professor of Family Medicine and Director of Rural Medicine Curriculum at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. “Today’s medical students often say, “I want to care for a community. Teach me how to do that.” I think that’s really exciting.” Dr. Wendling completed medical school at the University of Michigan … Read More

Today we’re having a conversation with Nicole Thorell, MSN, CEN, Chief Nursing Officer at Lexington Regional Health Center in Lexington, Nebraska. Nicole has been at Lexington Regional for ten years, and has been Chief Nursing Officer for four years. Prior to becoming the CNO, Nicole was a staff nurse and Director of Nursing Quality. “The secret sauce is really the … Read More

Today we’re having a conversation with Kelly McGrath, MD, MS, Chief Medical Officer at Clearwater Valley hospital and Clinics where he has served as a rural Family Medicine physician for 24 years.  He is also the Idaho Medical Director for Qualis Health – the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization. “I’ve gone from being a doubting Thomas to a true believer.” Dr. … Read More

This week we are celebrating Rural Health Leadership Radio™’s 2-year anniversary!  Yes!  Rural Health Leadership Radio™ is two years old! To celebrate, we are going to review the “Top 10” most listened to episodes, with a “Top 10 Count Down.” We also have a few special announcements! Announcement #1:  Rural Health Leadership Radio™’s mission is to engage rural health leaders in conversations, learning and research.  To achieve our mission, Rural Health Leadership Radio™ has become a non-profit organization, and just recently, achieved 501(c) (3) … Read More

This week we’re having a conversation with Jenna Bernson, a medical student at Michigan State University. Jenna attended Grand Valley State University’s Frederic Meijer Honors College and obtained her Bachelors of Science in Biomedical Science with minors in Chemistry and Music. “The U.P. has three times the rate of neonatal abstinence syndrome than any other region in Michigan and almost … Read More

This week we’re having a conversation with Kate Hill, Vice President of Clinical Services with The Compliance Team. “Our motto is actually safety, honesty and caring.” Kate Hill, RN, is a graduate of Albert Einstein Medical Center School of Nursing in Philadelphia, PA. As an Army Nurse, Kate served in Viet Nam (27th Surgical Hospital in Chu Lai) where she … Read More

This week we’re having a conversation with John Gardner, CEO of the Telluride Regional Medical Center (TRMC) in Telluride, CO. John joined TRMC as its Chief Executive Officer in June 2016. “How do we protect the viability of the organization, be responsive to the needs of the community and try to be good stewards of health care dollars?” Prior to joining … Read More

This week we’re having a conversation with Katie Peterson, Chief Nursing Officer at Pender Community Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital in Pender, Nebraska. “Our nursing staff is mostly millennials, so short staffing comes from having multiple nurses on maternity leave at the same time, not open positions.” In addition to sitting on the senior executive team and providing nursing leadership, … Read More

This week we’re having a conversation with Darrold Bertsch, the CEO of Sakakawea Medical Center, a Critical Access Hospital located in Hazen, North Dakota and also the CEO of Coal Country Community Health Center, an FQHC with locations in Beulah, Hazen, Killdeer and Center North Dakota. “There are challenges that certainly come our way, but local challenges need local solutions … Read More

This week we’re having a conversation with Dr. Scott Daniels, Performance Improvement Coordinator at the State of Hawaii Office of Primary Care and Rural Health. “Providing care in a culturally appropriate way is something that really gets stressed a lot in Hawaii, particularly in the rural areas.” Scott Daniels, Ph.D., has been in health care over eighteen years where he began as an analyst … Read More